The regional premier of “What Would Crazy Horse Do?” a play put on by Relative Theatrics centering on questions of race, preservation and relationships opens this week at the Gryphon Theatre.
“What Would Crazy Horse Do?” is a production that is intended to leave the audience changed. Kathryn Demith, co-director with Anne Mason, said the play is one that raises many important questions for viewers.
“It’s a complicated play,” Demith said. “When I first read it, I had no idea how to take it, and I think that the playwright intends for it to be that way.”
The plot follows twins Journey and Calvin Good Eagle, the last two remaining members of their tribe, as they navigate the aftermath of the death of their Grandfather. The two meet Evan Atwood and Rebel Shaw, members of the Ku Klux Klan who are attempting to reform Klan doctrine with the assistance of the recently deceased grandfather of Journey and Calvin.
“A lot of the conflict is about these Native Americans being worried that these white people are just here to exploit them,” Demith said. “I think the message is for the audience to see that these Native Americans have more to say than we really have allowed them to say in the past.”
The show features four actors, all local to Laramie. Talissa Marie Russel and Piram Duran, who play Journey and Calvin respectively, are both performing with Relative Theatrics for the first time.
“I’ve never done a play before,” Russel said. “So far the experience has been really fun-sometimes I get frustrated with it–it’s hard sometimes, but it is a lot of fun.”
Duran said that this production has given him a positive introduction to the world of theatre.
“This is a good way to get involved with something,” Duran said. “Relative Theatrics is a good production company. UW students shouldn’t be afraid to get out there and try something like acting. It’s thought-provoking and fun in a deep way.”
Kevin Inouye, who plays Rebel Shaw while also choreographing fight scenes and special effects, teaches in the UW theatre department. He said that “What Would Crazy Horse Do?” embodies the question-raising ability of theatre.
“One of the things I appreciate about live theatre is that it does a good job of avoiding dogmatic message giving in favor of question raising,” Inouye said. “It doesn’t hand you any answers, it presents complicated issues and grey areas and gives you stuff to discuss long afterwards.”
Anticipating this phenomenon, each production of “What Would Crazy Horse Do?” will be followed by a chat-back session with actors, the drama team, and the audience.
“I think for a lot of people, a night at the theatre with a friend can end up lasting many hours after the show because there are so many things that you want to debate or discuss or think about. I think this show will do a good job with that,” Inouye said.
Demith said that this play is powerful in its ability to cause audiences to ask important questions, but is also therefore geared toward a more mature audience. The play also includes violence, language, and adult themes that viewers should take into consideration.
“It will challenge your perception, and it’s meant to manipulate,” Demith said. “Be ready for that. It is in a good way, but it makes you question how you view these separations that we have between us. It doesn’t end happily, but it really makes you think about who wins in the situation.”
Inouye also said that people should come prepared to have their way of thinking tested.
“It deals with people who have dark sides and presents things that we like to dismiss in ways that makes it hard to just dismiss them outright,” Inouye said. “Come prepared to think, and come prepared to be challenged, as well as entertained I hope.”
“What would Crazy Horse Do?” opens at Gryphon Theatre on March 30. Additional performances will be held March 31, April 1, April 6, April 7 and April 8. All performances are at 7:30pm.
